Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)

Director:

Preston Sturges

Writer:

Preston Sturges (writer)

Release Date:

9 August 1944 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

MIRACLES DO HAPPEN! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Having been discharged from the Marines for a hayfever condition before ever seeing action, Woodrow...

Plot Keywords:

Mother | Mayor | Irony | Beautiful Woman | Politician

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Eddie Bracken	...	Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith
Ella Raines	...	Libby
Raymond Walburn	...	Mayor Everett D. Noble
William Demarest	...	Sgt. Heppelfinger
Franklin Pangborn	...	Committee Chairman
Elizabeth Patterson	...	Libby's Aunt
Georgia Caine	...	Mrs. Truesmith
Al Bridge	...	Political Boss (as Alan Bridge)
Freddie Steele	...	Bugsy
Bill Edwards	...	Forrest Noble
Harry Hayden	...	Doc Bissell
Jimmy Conlin	...	Judge Dennis
Jimmie Dundee	...	Cpl. Candida
Chester Conklin	...	Western Union Man
Esther Howard	...	Mrs. Noble

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Paramount Ranch - 2813 Cornell Road, Agoura, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since.

Goofs:

Continuity: Early in the movie, in the nightclub, there's a shot of a man sitting at a table eating a sandwich. After a quick cutaway the man is smoking and the sandwich is on his plate...untouched.

Quotes:

Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith: [eating pancakes for breakfast with the six Marines; Libby enters] Good morning, Libby. Won't you join us in a stack of collision mats - as they say in the good old Marine Corps. - and a cup of jamoke?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Patty Duke Show: The Conquering Hero (#1.8)" (1963)

Soundtrack:

Mademoiselle from Armentieres

IMHO, Sturges's best

Sure, I loved "The Palm Beach Story", "Sullivan's Travels", "The Lady Eve", "Miracle of Morgan's Creek", etc., but "Hail the Conquering Hero" holds up best for me. A brilliantly written comedy with very good performances from everyone. I really have nothing else to say except I think it's really pathetic that only 197 people have seen this movie and bothered to vote on it, while the garbage Hollywood serves us today gets thousands of votes. Don't settle for garbage! See THIS movie!